Device for measuring time intervals



Oct. 31, 1944. R,l PELLATON 2,361,563 I DEVICE FOR MEASURING TIME INTERVALS Filed March 24, 1942 2 sheets-sheet 1 ni N050 an 9 d@ F I "nl l E g 1 u s 11 1, *a 510 2 ==9 3E -s 1,8 4:: y :a "9` 7 /o CWV im Oct. 31, 1944. R. PELLATON 2,361,563

DEVICE FOR MEASURING TIME INTERVALS Filed March 24, 1942 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Oct. 31, 1944 DEVICE FOR MEASURING TIlVlE INTERVALS Raoul Pellaton, Les Ponts de Martel, Switzerland,

assignor to Manufacture des Montres Universal Perret et Berthoud S. A., Geneva, Switzerland, a firm of Switzerland l Application March 24, 1942, Serial No. 436,048 In Switzerland November 6, 1940 3 Claims.

The present invention relates to a watch of the type having a device for measurement of time intervals.

It is the object of the invention to provide a device independent of the movement for indicating the moment of starting the measurement of time intervals. A further object of the invention consists in the improved construction and arrangement of the operating means of said device as will be apparent from the following description and claims, reference being had to the accompanying drawings which show a preferred embodiment of the invention.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a top plan view showing the watch to which the invention is applied.

Fig. 2 is a similar view, a part of the dial being cut away to show constructional features.

Fig. 3 is a detail top plan view of the watch without dial.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged sectional view taken on -the line A--A in Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a detail plan view on an enlarged scale showing parts of the operating means according to the invention.

Fig. 6 is a sectional View taken on the line C-C in Fig. 5, and Fig. 7 is a sectional view taken on the line B-B in Fig. 3.

The embodiment represented in Figs. 1 to 2 is composed of a wrist watch having a chronograph and a counter mechanism for the minutes and hours. I, 2 and 3 are the usual hands cooperating with the ordinary hour scale 4. 5 is the small dial for the minutes counting device and 6 the dial for the hours counting device. 1 is the usual seconds hand. The dial comprises further a small dial provided with an additional hour scale 8 with which are shown cooperating two hands 9 and I0 indicating the first the hours and the second the minutes. The said two hands are independent of the movement; the first is fixed to the tube of a toothed wheel II turning freely on the tube of a pinion I2, which tube has xed thereto the minutes hand and is mounted to turn on an axle fast with the movement plate 20. On one side of said tube wheels is disposed a movable organ formed by a wheel I3 and a pinion I4; the latter meshes with the wheel II while the wheel I3 is shown meshing, on the one side, with the pinion I2, and, on the other side, with an intermediate wheel I5 connected by means of another intermediate wheel I6 with the crown wheel I1. I8 is a crown rotatably mounted on the watch on the exterior thereof and whose axis,

which is parallel to the mounting plate 2U, carries a pinion I9 meshing with the crown wheel I1 whose plane is parallel to the plane of the mounting plate.

When it is desired to measure the time by means of the chronograph hand 3 and the minutes and hours counting devices 5 and 1, the hands 9 and Il) are first displaced by means of the crown I8 so as to indicate the moment of starting the time measurement, and are then released in the attained position in which they will be kept until ya new operating of the crown takes place. In this way, the time measure will be completed by the indication of the time of starting the measurement.'

Referring now to the Figures 3 to 6, the numeral 20 indicates the mounting plate; 20a is a bridge and 2| the case band; on the outside of the latter, there is disposed the crown I8 which is shown actingvthrough gears I3 to I1 mounted on the said plate upon the wheel I I and the pinion I2 carrying the rst the hours hand 9 and the latter the minutes hand I0, whereby said hands which are intended for measurement of determined times turn about a special hour scale not represented.

The crown I8 is xed upon a shaft 22 which extends through a-central hole 23 provided in the hub of a pinion 24. The latter is in gear with the above mentioned gear I1. As shown in Fig. 7, the hole is of polygonal shape. The shaft 22 presents a portion 25 which is in the form of a straight prism and followed by two circular grooves 26 and 21. The said grooves are adapted to cooperate with elastic pincers formed by two spring blades 28 .and 29 carried by the mounting plate 20; the said blades are xed at one end to the plate by means of the screw 30, while the other ends thereof are shown having eyes engaging a fitting surface of the screw 3| which is also screwed into the mounting plate. The second end of the spring blade 28 bears constantly against a shoulder 32 of said screw, the spring 28 being thus in a fixed relation. The second end of the spring blade 29, however, can be displaced freely in transverse direction alongside the fitting surface of the screw 3|.

In the position vof rest represented in Fig. 4,

the prism 25 which constitutes the male half of a coupling is out of engagement with the hole 23 in the pinion 24, which hole is shown forming the female halfofsaid coupling. Thus, on turning the crown I8, the hands 9 and I0 will not be operated; the shaft is maintained in this uncoupled position by the pincers 28-29 engaging the groove 26; for operating the hands 9 and l0, for instance for resetting them to zero at the beginning of measuring a time interval, the crown I8 is to be drawn towards the exterior. The prism 25 then penetrates into the hole 23 and the crown will be coupled to the movement transmitting mechanism connected with the hands; the shaft will be maintained in this new or coupling position by the pincers 28-29 engaging the groove The invention is not limited to the examples represented in the drawings; in particular the operating crown I8 could be replaced by another member, e. g., a rotatable bezel.

I claim:

l. The combination with a watch having the usual hour scale, hour and minute hands and a winding stem, of an additional hour scale, two coaxial hands cooperating with said additional scale and indicating the first the hours and the second the minutes, said coaxial hands being independent of the movement of the iirst mentioned hour and minute hands, a movement transmission mechanism common to both said coaxial hands and comprising a pinion having a hollow hrb, the hole of said hub being of polygonal shape, so as to form the female half of a disengaging coupling, a shaft extending through said hole and being slidable longitudinally, said shaft having a prismatic portion forming the male half of said coupling for cooperating with said female half upon sliding said shaft, an operating crown carried by said shaft, and an elastic device adapted to :maintain the said shaft in a coupled and released position, respectively, whereby upon operating said crown, the two coaxial hands are brought into a position for indicating the moment of starting the measurement of time intervals.

2. The combination with a watch having the usual hour scale, hour and minute'hands and a winding stem, of an additional hour scale, two coaxial hands cooperating with said additional scale yand indicating the first the hours and the second the minutes, said-coaxial hands being independent ofthe movement of the first mentioned hour and minute hands, a movement transmission mechanism common to both said `hands and comprising a pinion having a hollow hub,

the hole of said hub being of polygonal shape so as to form the female half of a disengaging coupling, a shaft extending through said hole and being slidable longitudinally, said shaft having two circular grooves disposed adjacent each other and a prismatic portion forming the male half of said coupling for cooperating with said female half upon sliding said shaft, an operating crown carried by said shaft, and elastic pincers adapted `to engage either the one or the other of said grooves for `maintaining said shaft in a coupled and released position, respectively, whereby upon operating said crown, the two coaxial hands are brought into .a position for indicating the moment of starting the measurement of time intervals.

3. The combination with a watch having the usual hour scale, hour and minute hands and a winding stem, of an additional hour scale, two coaxial hands cooperating with said additional -scale and indicating the first the hours and the :second the minutes, said coaxial hands being independent of the movement of the first mentioned `hour and minutes hands, a movement transmis- .sion mechanism ,common to both Said coaxial .hands ,and Vcomprising a pinion having a hollow hub, ,the hole of said hub being of `polygonal shape `soas to form thefemale half of a disengaging coupling, a shaft extending through said hole and Abeing slidable longitudinally, `said shaft having twofcircular grooves disposed adjacent each other and a-.prismatic portion lforming the male vhalfof said coupling for cooperating with said female half upon sliding said shaft. and elastic pincers adapted to engage either the one or the other of said grooves for .maintaining said shaft in a coupled and released position, respectively, one branch of Asaid pincers `being formed by a fixed ,spring blade and the other branch by a spring blade extending parallel to the fixed .blade and `having one end secured to the watch while the other end thereof is displaceable in transverse direction, whereby upon operating said crown, the .two coaxial hands are brought into a position for indicating the moment of starting the measurement Aof time intervals.

`RAOUL PELLATON. 

